matthew turley and the exhibition for climate change
Matthew Turley’s image of an abandoned home filled with sand in Kolmanskop, Namibia, has been on display in Mexico City as part of an exhibition to highlight climate change. The exhibition was expertly curated by Susan Baraz and Hossein Farmani of the Lucie Foundation.
Kolmanskop was a bustling diamond-mining town in the early 20th century but after the diamond crash and World War I, it was abandoned. The town’s structures became too expensive to maintain in the harsh climate, and by 1954 it was a ghost town. Climate change likely amplified the hot and dry conditions already experienced in Africa.
The exhibition was originally created for COP21, the United Nations Climate Conference in Paris, held in November 2015. The exhibition was such a huge success, an expanded exhibition is on display in Mexico City for the Mayor’s Summit through February 5, 2017.
“I believe addressing climate change should be our world leaders’ top priority. As such, I’m deeply honored to have my work selected by the Lucie Foundation for these international exhibitions,” said Matthew.
Matthew’s photograph is in good company: Ed Kashi, Steve McCurry, Christian Aslund, and many others have also contributed work. More than one million people will view the images over the course of the exhibition period.